Description
Orange zest and frozen orange juice concentrate give this buttercream its flavour. A bit of vanilla softens the edges.
Ingredients
1/2 cup (115 g) room temperature butter
Finely grated zest of 1 large orange*
2 cups (250 g) icing sugar (also called confectioners’ sugar or powdered sugar)
2 tablespoons (30 ml) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla
generous pinch salt
Instructions
In a medium bowl, using a hand held mixer, beat the butter and zest until the butter is smooth.
Add the icing sugar, orange juice concentrate, vanilla, and salt. Beat on low until the icing sugar is fully incorporated. You might want to cover the bowl with a tea towel to prevent the icing sugar from flying about.
Once the icing sugar is blended into the butter, increase the speed to high and beat until the icing is very light and fluffy. Stop and scrape down the side of the bowl a few times. When it looks good, keep beating. Beat for at LEAST 5 minutes, and ideally for up to 10 minutes. The long beating produces a very smooth and creamy icing.
Notes
* If you don’t have a large orange on hand, you can use the zest from a few clementines or mandarines.
Leftover icing can be frozen. Or eaten with a spoon.
You can intensify the flavour by adding 1 teaspoon orange extract.
For an explanation about icing sugar, see the post on Easy Chocolate Buttercream Icing.
Keywords: buttercream, icing, orange, easy, frosting